ILWS September Challenges

Better late than never and you still have time to take part in the challenges over on In Love With Stamping, if you dont know where this is, follow the link on my right hand list, scroll down and you will find it.

This months challenges were varied. This is the sketch challenge, we were given this sketch and had to make a card using it.....

I did turn the sketch around to make this card. I used the Sweet Pea Paper Stack, Old Olive Satin Ribbon and the Hello Again Stamp Set. The Cardstock is So Saffron.
The next challenge was to make a card using a tone on tone. This means to use one colour but 2 tones of the colour, so, light blue and dark blue, or in my case, light purple, dark purple....

I used Perfect Plum Patterned Paper from Stampin Up and the Blooming With Beauty Stamp Set which is retiring at the end of the month, I will be very sad to see it go.

We also had to make a Children's Party Invitation, I used the Fox and Friends Stamp Set from Stampin Up, glad to see this is not retiring, the Sweet Pea Paper Stack, Brilliant Blue Cardstock, Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon and Old Olive Satin Ribbon.

And last but not least, a masking technique. This means you stamp something, place a mask over the top and stamp another image on top so you dont actually stamp on the bottom image... does this make sense. I used a Saleabration Stamp Set for this card, I love this stamp set, such a shame it was never in the catalogue. Again I used the Sweet Pea Paper Stack and Not Quite Navy Patterned Paper. The Cardstock is Whisper White and Rose Red.

So that is it from me today, off to the opticians in a minute. Went to the dentist yesterday and that cost me a fortune..... will definately be needing new glasses too, I think I must be falling apart.

Have a great day everyone... xx

This Month's Card Class.....

Okay, well I have lots to do this week and no time to do it as my Grandson has an appointment at the Royal London Hospital tomorrow and I am looking after my 22 month old Grandson, just not really feeling in a crafty mood at the moment anyway..... pah!!!! Think I am still recovering from having 17 people here Easter Sunday for roast dinner and definitely an overload of chocolate too, so diet starts again today!!! lol

So the above photo was my Card Workshop I did this month, I always find it really hard to judge how long it will take to make a card and I guess we had a bit too much to make this month, but everyone managed to stamp their images and make at least 2 of their cards and I showed them how to make the flowers on their notebooks...

How gorgeous are these colours. This month I decided I would not make everything matching, but use the same stamp set Greenhouse Garden for all of them but use different colourways so that they could see how different each card looked. For the notebook cover I used Perfect Plum Patterned Paper, Perfect Plum and Pale Plum Cardstock and Mellow Moss for the little leaves and the Taffetta Ribbon is also Mellow Moss....

This card is a flowerpot card and the flowers pull up and are attached to some card that you can write your message on. For this card I used Real Red and Whisper White Cardstock, there is also some Old Olive for the leaves and for the inside bit which you cannot see. The ribbon is Night of Navy and the inks are So Saffron, Real Red and Night of Navy.... the insides of the flowers are Chocolate Chip. I also used Jackpot Patterned Paper.

This card uses Pretty In Pink, Almost Amethyst and Certainly Celery Cardstock. The Patterned Paper is Tea Party and the Grosgrain Ribbon is Certainly Celery too....

This time I used Chocolate Chip, Sage Shadow and Whisper White Cardstock. The Patterned Paper is To The Nines, this was probably the easiest card of them all to make. All stash used to make all these cards comes from Stampin' Up! If you would like to order anything, please contact me on LindaLloyd@gmx.net or if you would like a new Stampin' Up! mini catalogue, please contact me at the above email addy and I will get one out to you ASAP.

If you like Magnolia, Sugar Nellie or KatzelKraft stamps you will find some second hand ones for sale here and postage is free too.... bonus!!

Have a great afternoon, take care.. xx

Sneak Peak

Stampin' Up! have a new mini catalogue coming out on 1st April and I thought I would show you a sneak peak of what is in there.....

The Patterned Paper I have used is the new Sweet Pea Paper Stack, you get 48 double sided sheets of thick paper, and they will all co-ordinate.... but most of all I love the Bird Punch.... don't you think this is just wonderful.... you get to punch out the branch, the bird and the wing... here I have made a card...

and here is the inside... I have used Chocolate Chip, Tempting Turquoise, Elegant Eggplant, So Saffron and Pale Plum Cardstock...

and I made some little co-ordinating bags which I am giving away to my customers who have recently placed an order with me... they are filled with lengths of ribbon....

And here is the whole set, so each customer gets a little thank you card and thank you gift..... If you would like to get your hands on a new Mini Catalogue just ask, and if you place an order who knows what lush little gift you may get enclosed with your order..... there will be another Mini Catalogue Sneak Peak tomorrow and on Sunday there will be a Mini Catalogue Blog Hop for you to go browse all the lush new stash.

Have a great afternoon all xxx and thanks to you all who left such kind comments yesterday or who emailed me, they are really appreciated.

A Male Card....

Well after a truly awful day yesterday and a day of running around after other people today, I did finally manage to make a birthday card for my Son in Law..... my daughter has been warned not to go on my blog until after her birthday next Monday..... lol

Not good at making male cards at the best of times and definitely not when under stress, but I was quite pleased how this one came out, the colours look much better in real life. I used the Groom Speciality Patterned Paper and the Jackpot Patterned Paper from Stampin' Up! The cardstock is Basic Black, Real Red and So Saffron and the Stamp Set is Cheers to You and is awesome for making mens cards..... they always love a pint of beer.... lol The ribbon is More Mustard and the images were coloured in using my Copic Markers.

This is the inside of the card, all nicely matching and with the added benefit of a Martha Stewart Punch.

Have a great evening all, hopefully will be back tomorrow after my card class some time... take care all xx

Cards, Cards, Cards...

Yep, another card, I dont make much else nowadays.....

Sentiment is from Verve Stamps, Patterned Paper is The Green Stack, cardstock is Tempting Turquoise and So Saffron from Stampin Up!... the "laughter" is a rub on from Stampin Up! Er... nothing much else to say, having a rather stressful day, even my new Stampin' Up! Stash hasn't lightened my mood unfortunately..... maybe a bar of chocolate.... lol

Have a great evening all xx

A Couple of Challenges

I am still busy making my card order and needed a bit of inspiration, so decided to look up some challenges. This card was made using a couple of challenge, a colour one and a sketch one. I used all Stampin' Up! Stash for this card, am trying to do this more often now... it is so lush!!

The colours I used were Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, Bashful Blue, More Mustard, So Saffron and Whisper White as we dont have Deep Red and Baja Blue in the UK.

And the sketch I copied almost exactly except I added a bit of bling in the bottom right hand corner.

I used the new SAB set Happy Moments for the sentiment "Thank You", Circle Circus to edge the inner circle and flight of the Butterfly for the main image, and the Butterfly Punch to punch out the butterfly. I used the Level 1 Hostess Set Darling Dots for the flower on the Bashful Blue Cardstock. It is very unusual for me to use no Patterned Paper, but I did manage it....

The snow is nearly gone around here, but I am having big trouble with my car since the snow. The battery totally died, so had a new one fitted yesterday at a cost of more than £100 and this morning something has drained the battery and the new one is flat.... grrr thats all I need electrical problems with electrical diagnoses costing more than £50 an hour....

Dont forget my card workshop on Thursday, should be good as I am loving the Stamp Set Flight of the Butterfly at the moment, such pretty cards, hope my ladies like them.

Take care all, have a safe day...

Hold On To Your Seats......

I have been really, really busy today and I made a total of 6 cards... yes 6, but unfortunately the light got dark quickly (?) and i couldn't photograph the sixth one, so that will have to wait until tomorrow. So I have completed 9 cards in all for my Church Order, well on target for Sunday, and the lady was thrilled with the ThankYou card I made with the little children on it, so I am happy as she is happy.

The paper on the first one is Bloom and Grow by My Minds Eye, the Cardstock is Stampin' Up! So Saffron (I always seem to use the Stampin' Up! somewhere)... the sentiment is from Our Daily Bread, a US company that makes some awesome stamps, the leaf punch is a Martha Stewart Punch and the bling is from my stash....

Again I used Bloom and Grow Patterned paper, and the ric rac ribbon is also made by My Minds Eye to match the Patterned Paper, again the sentiment is Our Daily Bread and the cardstock is Really Rust form Stampin' Up!. The butterfly is a Spellbinders die and was cut out using Certainly Celery and Really Rust cardstock (yes Stampin' Up! again).

Yep, you've guessed it, more Bloom and Grow Papers, sentiment from Our Daily Bread, the edges were punched using the Stampin' Up! scallop edge punch, the ribbon is Stampin' Up! taffeta ribbon in Pretty in Pink as is the cardstock.... the big brad in the centre of the flower is a My Minds Eye brad made to match the paper, everything else is from my stash.

Do I need to tell you who made the Patterned Paper.... lol, My Minds Eye again, Cardstock is Very Vanilla and Glorious Green (Stampin' Up!, their cardstock really is excellent and just the right thickness for so many projects)... sentiment - Our Daily Bread. The flower was punched out using the Stampin' Up! five petal punch and 1" circle punch, the bling was from my stash.

I thought I would try an easel card, seeing as everyone else seems to have made one and I haven't.... must admit, even though the card looked quite plain to me, it still looked really pretty propped up like an eassel. The Patterned Paper is retired Stampin' Up!, the scallop edge is Stampin' Up! scallop edge punch, sentiment is Our Daily Bread and everything else is from my stash.

Have a great evening all xx

Sorry about Friday's Post

Hi all, I am sorry I didn't post anything Friday, but when I loaded my camera card into my computer I managed to lose all my removeable drives, and despite DH spending 3 hours Friday night trying to fix it nothing happened, and I have only had the computer since just after Christmas, so I was not a happy bunny.... so he looked up PC World's phone number Saturday morning so he could ring them as it has a year's warranty, and I said, why dont you just turn it on and see what happens, and guess what, the drives all came back.... phew, so pleased.

So here is what I was going to upload on Friday. I made a bag and card for a lady in Church as we have bought her a book which she should find useful...

I used Petals and Paisley Patterned Paper, Tempting Turquoise, chocolate Chip and Rose Red Cardstock. The Stamp Set is Polka Dots and Paisley. This is retired but you can still purchase it whilst stocks last. The inks used were Rose Red, Old Olive, So Saffron and Pretty In Pink. I also used the Scallop Edge Punch.

Have a great evening all xx

Paper Share and New Demonstrator Offer

This will stay at the top until filled, please scroll down for newer blog posts.

Stampin Up are bringing out a Mini Catalogue which will start on !st April until 30th September, click on the mini catalogue picture on the left hand column. I will be doing a Paper Share once the Catalogue comes out, you will get 1 6 x 6 sheet of all the Designer Patterned Papers in the current catalogue, plus 1 6 x 6 sheet from the 3 new packs in the mini catalogue, you will also get 1m of each of the 3 new Striped Grosgrain ribbons in So Saffron, Pretty in Pink and Bashful Blue. So in summary
102 6x6 sheets of Patterned Paper, from current catalogue, plus the new PP from the Mini Catalogue
1.2" Grosgrain Striped Ribbon in Bashful Blue, Pretty in Pink and So Saffron. 1m of each of these = 3m
The total cost will be £20 including postage. I will also have a Level 1 Hostess Set to Raffle off, so one of the 8 lucky people will receive a Level 1 Hostess Set of their choice.
I need 8 people for one of these groups and this will be dispatched to you in April once the Mini Catalogue comes out. If you are interested please let me know at LindaLloyd@gmx.net

Seven people have signed up so far, only 1 space left!!

If you would like to become a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, Stampin' Up! are doing a special offer starting 12th March until the end of March. You can purchase the Starter Kit for only £125 with goods to the value of £240 in it and you can also personalise a lot of this kit so that you get the stamp sets and colours that YOU want. So what do you have to lose, you can sign up as a hobby demo and just buy stash for yourself and get the demonstrator discount on all the stash you want. If after a couple of months you think it is not for you, then you can resign and keep everything that you have already bought including the Starter Kit, how can you lose. If you sign up through me I will also give you 4 FREE stamp sets, one of each of the Saleabration Sets which are no longer available and that you cannot purchase. So this is what you get...

1. 4 Free Stamp Sets

2. £240 worth of SU Stash personalised to your choice for only £125.

3. Both are yours to keep forever even if you decide Stampin Up is not for you.

4. A friendly team I currently have a team of 10 people, plus a forum which is only available to my team and Stampers 10 Club, plus I am always at the end of the phone or an e-mail if you need help or advice.

For more information, contact me on LindaLloyd@gmx.net

Take Care

Not so nice Monday....

The weather here has been apalling this afternoon, it has winded, it has rained and all at once too and just at the time the children come out of school, funny enough now it is evening, the sun has come out at last. My daughter drove down to Cornwall yesterday and she says the weather is lovely there, infact I saw for myself as she sent me photos, the sky is blue, the sun is shining, but they also have the wind, which was just as well as she was going surfing today.

I had a lovely Mother's Day (well actually I did more work than ever and even cooked my dinner for everyone) and got some lovely presents, 2 CDs that I wanted, the new Tim Hughes, Happy Day and the new Delirious Album which is possibly their last ever. I also got a gorgeous blue toiletry bag full of Dove toiletries, some chocolates and wine, 3 books, 1 of which I asked for and the other 2 were surprises, my 12 year old son bought me a rose and then weeded all the overgrown garden and planted it for me, and my 6 year old made daddy go out and buy me some flowers..... from my son of course... lol I also got some gorgeous flower candles, but they are truly too beautiful to burn, so am going to have to think on that one.... lol because what is the point in having candles if you dont use them...

Today I have been making a bag and card for my Sister's birthday tomorrow, they are totally matching, and I have no idea how she is going to open the bag. It started off as a brown lunch bag, I folded the top over and then put panels on the front and back and joined them at the top, so I am thinking she is going to have to cut it open... lol not my problem. So here they are...

I have been using new stash from the New Mini Catalogue which comes out on 1st April, and the new items are truly scrummy... I used So Saffron and Certainly Celery Cardstock, the new Playful Petals Stamp Set plus the Ovals All Stamp Set along with the Oval Scallop Punch and the Oval Punch, these are proving to be really popular, I have sold 3 sets of these already. The Patterned Paper is called Tea Party and the ribbon is Certainly Celery Grosgrain. On the bag I actually used the stamp from Ovals All, but on the card I used the stamp from Ovals All but only coloured in the flower part with my Stampin Up Marker in So Saffron, then using my Stamp a ma jig I stamped Happy Birthday from the Very Versatile Stamp Set and punched it out using the Oval Punch. How versatile are these sets when you can just mix and match.

I have one place left in my Paper and Ribbon Share, this will be sent to you at the beginning of April sometime as some of the paper and ribbon is from the new Mini Catalogue and I cannot order this until 1st April, but I promise you, the items will be ordered on 1st April, so you dont have long to wait now.

Dont forget the fantastic offer on the Starter Kit, just £125, and if you add just the stash up it comes to £217, so one really big bargain here, and all you have to do after signing up as a demonstrator and receiving this kit is to meet a target every quarter (and guess what, the first quarter doesn't count, you dont have to reach your targets until your second quarter, but you do need to sign up this evening, or tomorrow to get the Starter Kit at this price).

Off to Beavers now, sewn on the badge I need to and I will be staying to help, so need to get dinner ready so that they can just put it in the oven and cook it... have a great evening all xx

Thank God It Is Friday........

This week seems to have taken so long, haven't been able to get motivated for anything really, so luckily it is the weekend and once the housework is out of the way tomorrow, we can enjoy the weather which is supposed to be really nice.

I really need to make a birthday card for my sister whose birthday is on Monday, plus decorate a little bag to put her gift in, money is tight at the moment so only bought her a small gift, but thought if I made a really nice pretty bag, this might make up for it... lol (we only ever buy each other small gifts anyway). Hope you are all looking forward to Mother' Day on Sunday, cant wait to see all my brood, although most of them come for dinner on a Sunday anyway, I wonder if anyone else will offer to cook it this time.... lol

My most exciting news of the day, in fact of the week, DH managed to buy 2 U2 tickets before they sold out this morning, plus they are awesome seats too (they need to be, they cost two arms and 2 legs) and so am so excited and cannot wait until August when we get to see them. The last time we saw them live was in Poland in 2005 and for a while it was touch and go whether we would get out there to see them, but as usual they were awesome, and I was so amazed at how the Polish people couldn't talk english, but could sing all of the U2 songs... and we were told on the minibus on the way to our hotel, that the whole stadium where wearing white and red depending on whether you were sitting or standing to make a great big polish flag, and wow, was Bono impressed with this, he was absolutely blown away, shame the English don't make as much of their concerts as the other countries do....

Anyway, I do still have a card to post, and here it is...


Hmmm cannot remember which colour cardstock I used, whether it was Barely Banana or So Saffron plus Bashful Blue. The set is a Level 2 Hostess Set, Spring bundle and the inks used are Old Olive, Chocolate Chip and Bashful Blue. The sentiment is from the Seasonal Wishes Stamp Set. I also used the Scallop Edge Punch.

Hope you all have an awesome weekend and make the most of the good weather, take care xx

Mother's Day...

So its nearly time for Mother's Day, the day we can put our feet up and rest.... ha ha, not likely at least not in my house, although everyone does make an effort to do something nice for me, so cant be bad... lol And today I have made my Mum a Mother's Day Card, haven't tackled the problem of what I am going to buy her yet, maybe I will take a photo of all the children left here and buy a frame for it as she is definately lacking in photographs of my children. But then again she is not their Mother... hmm, will have to think that one through.
Anyway, here is todays card...

For this card I used the New Ski Slope Patterned Papers which are in the new Mini Catalogue which you can order from, from 1st April. The cardstock is Old Olive, and the image is also from the new Mini Catalogue and is a set called Soft Summer. The sentiment is from the Occasional Greetings Stamp Set and the flowers are Accents and Elements, oh yes, the ribbon is again from the New Mini Catalogue and is Pink Striped Grosgrain (it also comes in So Saffron and Bashful Blue). And Bashful Blue brads for the flower centres.

Beautiful Monday....

Wow, how is the weather where you are, I think spring is really on its way now, the sun is shining and I have even left my coat at home whilst venturing out, something unheard of for me. I also have a nice glass come vase full of daffodils in my room whilst working, so it really seems spring like to me.

I started a low carb diet last week and managed to lose 2.5lb in a week which is much better than I was doing on the weight watchers one, plus I can eat bacon.... woohoo!! In fact my favourite meal at the moment is a chicken breast sliced, chorizo sausage, half a sliced chilli, about 5 mini plum tomatoes and stir fry it all together and serve with some rocket and mayonnaise... with melted cheese on the top... I could eat it every night except I forgot to get the chicken breast out the freezer today... boohoo, so sausages, bacon and eggs for dinner it will be then. I have found these wonderful chilli sausages that are not too high in carbs, just 5.8g per 2 sausages and they are a nice size too...

I got some new Stampin Up stamps today, but haven't used them yet, I tried to get all the mundane jobs out of the way today so that I can start creating tomorrow. Although I did break open some of my new stamps and ribbon to make DD a birthday card.

So todays card is this....

So Saffron and Chocolate Chip Patterned Paper, Chocolate Chip and So Saffron Cardstock, Chocolate Chip Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon and the scallop is cut using the Scallop Edge Punch, everything else is from my stash. The sentiment is from Verve Stamps. Must rush, my son should be at Beavers in 10 minutes. Have a great evening all xx

A Nice Relaxing Weekend....

We had a nice relaxing weekend, nothing too strenuous went on, but only because we had forgotten that the garden needed doing... lol

The weekend started with our meal which was very yummy, in fact very very yummy which we ate alongside a very nice Hardy's Chardonnay, my favourite white wine, the new look bedroom was very relaxing with all the candles lit too, must remember to take some photographs...

Little pug has had her big lampshade collar taken off today and looks much better now, she is now able to eat by herself as there is no collar to get in the way, so look out cats she will be after your food again...

And my card for today is...

Again mainly Stampin Up, I used the Bloomin' With Beauty Stamp Set, the retired Le Jardin Designer Patterned Paper, Pretty In Pink Taffetta Ribbon and the edge was punched using my Fiskars Border Punch. The Sentiment is from the Sincere Salutations Stamp Set and stamped in Always Artichoke Ink. Hope you like it....

Stampin Up are also bringing out a Mini Catalogue which will start on 1st April until 30th September, watch this space for more details....

I will be doing a Paper Share once the Catalogue comes out, you will get 1 6 x 6 sheet of all the Designer Patterned Papers in the current catalogue, plus 1 6 x 6 sheet from the 3 new packs in the mini catalogue, you will also get 1m of each of the 3 new Striped Grosgrain ribbons in So Saffron, Pretty in Pink and Bashful Blue. So in summary

102 6x6 sheets of Patterned Paper, from current catalogue, plus the new PP from the Mini Catalogue

1.2" Grosgrain Striped Ribbon in Bashful Blue, Pretty in Pink and So Saffron. 1m of each of these = 3m

The total cost will be £20 including postage. I will also have a Level 1 Hostess Set to Raffle off, so one of the 8 lucky people will receive a Level 1 Hostess Set of their choice.

I need 8 people for one of these groups and this will be dispatched to you in April once the Mini Catalogue comes out. If you are interested please let me know at LindaLloyd@gmx.net

Have a good day all xx